The Impact of Hate-Motivated Behavior on

Hate crimes are on the rise in the U.S. What are the psychological effects?

Decades of research suggest hate crimes can lead to a wide range of mental health issues, including increased rates of depression, anxiety, and PTSD

The Federal Bureau of Investigation defines a hate crime as a “criminal offense against a person or property motivated in whole or in part by an offender’s bias against a race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, ethnicity, gender, or gender identity.” In the bureau’s most recent report, released in March 2023, hate crimes reported in the United States increased nearly 12% in 2021 over the previous year. The FBI said close to 65% of victims were reportedly targeted because of their race or ethnicity, 15.9% were targeted for their sexual orientation, and 14.1% were targeted because of their religion.

Prejudice and discrimination are typically the foundation of hate-based violence. This type of violence can take the form of verbal violence, which may include degradation, harassment, humiliation, and threats. Hate-based violence may also take the form of physical violence, such as bullying, sexual violence, and maiming, and can go as far as murder and genocide.

What are the mental health effects of hate crimes?

Experiences of racial discrimination are consistently linked with mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), as well as physical ailments such as diabetes, hypertension, and obesity.

Young adults who faced discrimination frequently—at least a few times per month—were around 25% more likely to be diagnosed with a mental health disorder and twice as likely to develop severe psychological distress than those who hadn’t experienced discrimination or did less often, according to a 2021 study in the journal Pediatrics.

Hate crimes can lead to a wide range of mental health issues, including increased rates of depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, post-traumatic stress disorder, and substance use. A 2020 study found experiences of hate are associated with poor emotional wellbeing such as feelings of anger and shame. Victims tend to experience poor mental health, including depression, anxiety, and suicidal behavior. Some research also points to the finding that the experience of hate-motivated behavior can result in blaming of and lower empathy toward fellow victims.

Entire communities can feel the impacts of victimization. Members of the targeted community may experience vicarious trauma symptoms resulting from witnessing others being victimized.

Psychological research has also found that even just the use of hateful language against others in national issue campaigns and venues, such as online platforms, can have devastating consequences.

For example, a study on the effects of Proposition 8 in California highlighted that sexual minority individuals had to contend not only with the results of the passage of an anti-gay marriage law but also with the stress of the campaign itself. The study found participants experienced many negative emotions due to “media campaigns that disparage gay and lesbian people, seeing yard signs and bumper stickers of individuals who are against same-sex marriage, and/or having stressful conversations with people regarding the ballot measure.”

Read more at: https://www.apa.org/topics/gun-violence-crime/hate-crimes